1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to formation of a self-converge bottom electrode ring for non-volatile memory cells and more specifically to phase change memory cells.
2. Description of Background
There are two major groups in computer memory: non-volatile memory and volatile memory. Constant input of energy in order to retain information is not necessary in non-volatile memory but is required in volatile memory. Examples of non-volatile memory devices are optical disks (CDs and DVDs), magnetic hard drives, and phase change memory. Examples of volatile memory devices include DRAM and SRAM. The present invention is directed to phase change memory and the method of forming smaller memory cells in phase change memory devices.
In phase change memory, information is stored in materials that can be manipulated into different phases. Each of these phases exhibit different electrical properties which can be used for storing information. The amorphous and crystalline phases are typically two phases used for bit storage (1's and 0's) since they have detectable differences in electrical resistance. Specifically, the amorphous phase has a higher resistance than the crystalline phase. Often, glass chalcogenides are utilized as phase change material. This group of materials contain a chalcogen (Periodic Table Group 16/VIA) and a more electropositive element. Selenium (Se) and tellurium (Te) are the two most common semiconductors in the group used to produce a glass chalcogenide when creating a phase change memory cell. An example of this would be Ge2Sb2Te5 (GST), SbTe, and In2Se3. However, some phase change materials do not utilize chalcogen such as GeSb. Thus, a variety of materials can be used in a phase change material cell as long as they can retain separate amorphous and crystalline states.
The amorphous and crystalline phases in phase change material are reversible. An electrical pulse traveling through phase change material melts the same due to ohmic heating. A relatively high intensity, short duration pulse causes quick melting and cooling times; the phase change material does not have time to form organized crystals, thereby creating an amorphous phase. A relatively low intensity, long duration pulse allows the phase change material to slowly cool, thus forming organized crystals and is said to be in the crystalline phase. Also, a smaller phase change region results in less energy necessary to melt the phase change material.
Often, a bottom electrode is utilized to heat the phase change material in the phase change region. The shape, size, and formation of the bottom electrode affect the effective qualities of the bottom electrode in providing the current necessary for the phase change in the phase change material. Thus it is desirable to manufacture a bottom electrode that minimizes the energy required for operation while providing evenly distributed heating of the phase change material.